Since about 1915, a 7-foot-tall stone man has been shouldering a heavy burden on the corner of a Southeast Side building — more than hundred years without a break! But there’s some debate as to exactly who he is.

A west suburban forest preserve is dispatching an army of freshwater mussels to clean up contaminated waters. “They may be small, but they have enormous beneficial effects on the lives of other organisms,” said one staff member.